


By Chance

by aeowa



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: 99 line comes together for the gays, 99z centric, Alternate Universe - College/University, But we love him for it, M/M, One Shot, Summer Romance, Woosan, college au except it all takes place outside of class, just guys being dudes, no beta we die like men, san is a sunshine boy, stan gayteez, the summer love we all desire, what are tags, wooyoung is mean bc all the members said he is the meanest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-18
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-09-06 19:23:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20296687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aeowa/pseuds/aeowa
Summary: The streetlamps cast a distasteful, pale, yellow light onto the visible surroundings. It was quite warm outside, but there was a refreshing breeze moving through the trees. Noisy bugs were buzzing around the light sources. A rabbit froze near a tree as a person trudged down the street. They were exhausted. It was just past three o’clock in the morning. The person had no sense of time, just that it was dark, therefore it was night. The person was a young man. The young man’s name was Wooyoung. Wooyoung was absolutely blasted drunk, and all he wanted was to sleep.





	By Chance

**Author's Note:**

> uh so i wrote this to help me deal with writer's block on a different fic and it turned into something beautiful. i honestly didnt think it would pass 4k words but here we are, more than double that prediction. amazing. im actually really proud of this fic??? i only had a hard time towards the end, but i usually do run out of steam when i try to wrap up everything nicely. other than that, i somehow had a lot of good ideas that came together and worked well, which has never happened before.  
so here's this woosan fic that i wanted, couldnt find, and made it a reality

A boot-covered foot splashed into a flooded patch of grass. The person who was attached to the boot-covered foot stumbled, but regained stable posture after a few moments. The voice of the person who was attached to the boot-covered foot sounded irritated. The person stood still for a moment, hoping that water had not leaked into their boot and soaked their sock. This was fortunately not the case. The person kept on walking, but this time moving into the silent street. There was less of a chance that they would walk into any more puddles, of course.

The streetlamps cast a distasteful, pale, yellow light onto the visible surroundings. It was quite warm outside, but there was a refreshing breeze moving through the trees. Noisy bugs were buzzing around the light sources. A rabbit froze near a tree as the person trudged down the street. The posture of the person who was attached to the boot-covered foot was slumped. They were tired. It was just past three o’clock in the morning. The person had no sense of time, just that it was dark, therefore it was night.

The person was a young man. The young man’s name was Wooyoung. Wooyoung was absolutely blasted drunk, and all he wanted was to sleep.

Wooyoung had an idea.

There was a car parked in the street a few meters away. He walked towards it. When he reached the car, he grabbed the door handle and pulled. He was met with resistance. Wooyoung tried the other doors, but nothing opened. As luck would have it, there were at least eight other cars he could try, so he did.

It was not until Car No.7 that Wooyoung found his resting place for the night. Or rather, early morning. Time was a technical detail of minor importance. So Wooyoung climbed into the backseat of the car and laid across the three seats. The seatbelt buckles jabbed into his back. He shifted around for several moments before he found a semi-comfortable position. The lights automatically faded off, and Wooyoung let out a sigh of content. He slid open the sunshade of the sunroof, and was pleased to see several stars, but the streetlamps interfered with his stargazing, so he closed it. The car’s windows were thankfully open, so a soft breeze moved languidly over Wooyoung’s face. He closed his eyes, and fell asleep with nothing particular on his mind, just that the car smelled like seasalt and lemon balm.

~

San was having a bad day. He had set an early alarm (5:45AM to be precise) so that he could go for a run, because if he waited too long, it was too hot outside. It was the “September curse”. The summer weather lingers through the start of the school year, perfect for outside activities, but nothing too intense. Otherwise, you become a sweaty, dehydrated mess.

San slept through his alarm.

At nine o’clock in the morning, he was abruptly awoken by a pillow to the face.

“Wake up, sleepy head!!!” San’s housemate, Mingi, yelled from the foot of his bed.

San ripped the pillow off his face and scrambled for his phone on the bedside table. He checked the time, and let out a distraught moan.

“Yeah, you overslept,” Mingi said while observing San’s mini-tantrum.

“Why didn’t you wake me up? You seem like you’ve been awake for hours, you’re never like this in the morning.”

“It’s Sunday, you deserve the day off.”

“Today _ is _ my off-day, dummy. Now, it’s ruined.”

“Don’t be so dramatic, San. Yunho just woke up, too, and you don’t hear him moaning and groaning. C’mon, I’ve made a fresh pot of coffee. After that and a shower, you’ll feel like a new man,” Mingi pat a covered lump on the bed that he guessed was San’s leg.

“Did I hear my name?” Yunho, San’s other housemate, appeared in the doorframe. His head nearly reached the top.

“San’s being dramatic, but it’s fine. C’mon we have a game to finish,” Mingi ushered Yunho out of San’s room, but did not close the door. He definitely did that on purpose because he knows how much San hates it. It forced San to get out of bed. _ Clever bastard. _

As San walked down a hallway to the bathroom, he could hear video game noises and the excited voices of his housemates float up the staircase. Once in the bathroom, San turned on the shower, waiting for the water to get hot. He scrutinized his appearance, playing with his white-blonde hair until the steam on the mirror covered his reflection.

Mingi was partially right about the shower. San was in a better mood leaving the bathroom than he was going in. And he felt even better after drinking coffee (and stealing the remainder of Yunho’s breakfast.) _ Perhaps today won’t be terrible. _

San would be proven wrong in just under 35 minutes.

He sat on the sofa watching Mingi and Yunho play their video game for a while before deciding how to save his Sunday.

“I think I’m gonna try to buy my books today. And-”

“Already? We still have a week ‘til classes start; you don’t even know if you’ll actually need─ YUNHO YOU CAN’T DO THAT─ the books. Why waste your money?” Mingi spoke to his game controller.

“...And I’m gonna get more coffee. Want anything?”

“Iced latte for me,” Mingi stated.

“Cold brew with a shot of sweet cream,” Yunho did not look away from the screen.

San rolled his eyes, but wrote down their drink orders in his phone’s notes anyways. He grabbed his car keys and sunglasses, checked that he had his wallet, and slipped his shoes on.

“Bye, losers!” San called out before exiting through the front door.

The reply from his housemates was muffled from the walls of the house, but still audible. The house was old and cheap, but not the worst house on campus. They all got their own bedroom, it was two stories, and no one fell through the floor yet.

Perfect for three college boys.

San’s bad luck was about to strike. He was unknowingly headed right for it. He had his car keys out and ready, not excited to sit in the hot car, but he remembered he left his widows open, so it would at least be a little aired out. He rounded the car and reached for the door handle of the driver’s seat, completely oblivious to the leg sticking out of the backseat window. It was only until he ripped open the door that it caught his eye. San froze, keys dangling from his fingers. All he could do was blink.

_ Am I hallucinating? Am I dreaming? Did I even wake up yet? _

His heart was pounding in his chest. There was a body in his car and he had no idea what to do.

_ No, no, no, it’s not a body. It’s a person. It’s not a dead body. It’s a real, living person and there is _ not _ a dead body in your car. _

He still didn’t know what to do, though. He didn’t know how to wake them up, or even if he should wake them up. What would this person do once they were awake? San didn’t want to die this morning, despite having such a bad day so far. Okay, it’s not that bad of a day. It was only 10AM.

After going through about 30 scenarios in which he dies, San decided to take a peek at the person in his car. Carefully avoiding the leg sticking out of the backseat window, he peered through.

The person was a young-looking… dude? He just looked like a regular dude. He could be San’s age. He also could be considered attractive, but he _ also _ could try to murder San. He didn’t want to risk anything. This “dude” had his arm thrown over his eyes, and he looked like he would fall to the floor of the car at any moment. Lucky for the stranger, San kept his car clean and pristine. San shook his head, scolding himself for worrying about the attractive stranger spending time on any dirty floors.

San considered about 30 more scenarios (several in which he still dies) and finally made a decision. He calmly put his keys in the ignition, took one more look at the potentially-attractive-stranger, and turned the keys. His car roared to life. San quickly jumped from the driver’s door to the back door, and ripped it open. The potentially-attractive-stranger was now in a different position. And he was awake. He was on the floor of the car, the leg that was out the window now stretched across the back seats, and was pressing both hands onto the top of his head.

“What the fuck are you doing in my car?” San bluffed courage and crossed his arms across his chest.

The stow-away merely groaned.

“Fuck, please be gentle with me, Yeosang, I─ you’re not Yeosang,” The potentially-attractive-stranger peered up at San from the floor of the backseat. His furrowed brow was obstructed by his dark hair. He looked around, visibly confused. He looked back at San and cringed; he pressed the heels of his hands into his eye sockets. San was offended. He didn’t look _ that _ bad today.

“I s-said… what the fuck are you doing in my car?” San stumbled over his words. This stranger was _ definitely _ attractive, despite the nasty cut across his left cheek.

“Yeah, I heard you the first time, pretty-boy. Y’ever heard of a hangover before? I’m going through it.”

_ Pretty boy? _

San’s hand came up to touch his chest in offense. _ So the definitely-attractive-stranger has an attitude, huh? _

“That still doesn’t answer my question,” San was getting more confident. Or perhaps just impatient. The sun was getting higher and warmer by the minute, and he had plans today. “Let’s just start simple. Tell me your name, and I’ll tell you mine, and then we go from there.”

At the very least, San was no longer afraid of getting murdered.

“Fuck off,” The definitely-attractive-stranger pressed his fingers into his temples.

“Great. My name is San. You can call me San. Next question. How did you get into my car?”

“You left it unlocked, dumbass. So I came here for a late-night snooze,” The definitely-attractive-stranger moved back onto the seats in the back row. In the process, he removed the flannel shirt he was wearing, crumbled it into a ball, and put it over his face. He lay down again, and a tattoo on the definitely-attractive-stranger’s tricep caught San’s eye. It looked like a compass.

“Hey! You can’t─ I’m trying─ I’m talking to you! You can’t sleep here! Get outta my car, you b─”

“Tell you what, pretty-boy,” The definitely-attractive-stranger ripped the flannel shirt off his face and sat up surprisingly quick for someone who was so drunk they thought it was a good idea to sleep in a random car in the street. “Hand over the sunglasses and take me out to breakfast, and I’ll be out of that shiny blonde hair of yours in no time.” He offered his right hand.

San just stood there with his mouth hanging open like an idiot.

“Great! It’s a deal,” The definitely-attractive-stranger scooted towards the open door and was suddenly dangerously close to San. If he wanted to, the stranger could wrap his legs around San’s waist. Instead, he closed San’s mouth, pat his cheek, and snatched the sunglasses off his shirt collar.

“C’mon, it’s _ your _ car, remember? You drive,” The definitely-attractive-stranger slipped on the sunglasses. They looked way too good on him. A smirk grew on his lips. San was lucky he didn’t catch his own reflection in the glasses before finally moving towards the driver’s seat.

He looked terrified. Or terribly lovestruck.

With a stranger in the passenger seat, San finally put the car into drive, and off they went to San’s favourite restaurant café.

It was almost 11 o’clock in the morning by the time the unlikely pair had been seated. They had to wait 10 minutes for a table, and it was terribly awkward. San’s new companion had simply sat in the restaurant café’s waiting area and did nothing. And that seemed good enough for him. San, on the other hand, felt like he should be engaging him somehow. He had to keep reminding himself that he was not obligated to entertain this person, no matter how attractive he was, no matter how much San wanted to get to know him.

He also _ really _ needed to text Mingi and Yunho, but he couldn’t do it without visibly losing his composure.

When they were finally seated, they ordered water and coffee drinks right away.

“Caffeine is bad for hangovers, you know,” San said without much thought. He internally cringed for sounding so… caring. This guy was not his friend. He was more like San’s captor. 

“Thanks, I don’t care. So, San…” The stranger crossed his arms over his chest. He had abandoned the flannel shirt in the backseat of San’s car. He currently wore a simple, grey t-shirt with a small, red rose on its shirtpocket. His tattoo was visible again. It was definitely a compass. “What’s it like living in a house on campus?”

_ Is this guy some sort of stalker? _

“How did you─”

“Your car was parked on a residential street with only houses around. Of course you live in a house. So what’s it like? Living with friends? I’m more of an apartment kind of guy, myself…” He raised his eyebrows as he waited for an answer.

“Uh, yeah… I live with two of my friends…” San was unsure how much he should be telling this guy. He didn’t think he’d ever see him again (despite the small bundle of desire to do exactly that lurking in the back of his head), so he didn’t see the point in telling too much about his personal life.

“Cool. I live with one of my friends in an apartment on Northwood. Speaking of which…” The stranger dug around the pockets of his pants and retrieved his cellphone. “Yep. He thinks I’m dead. Excellent battery life, this thing,” He nodded and pocketed his phone again.

“Okay, can you just─ can we cut the small talk? What were you doing in my car? Why did you think it an acceptable thing to just hop into a stranger’s car for a ‘late night snooze’?”

“Jesus, calm down, I haven’t even had my coffee yet. Ah, perfect timing.”

A waiter holding two large porcelain coffee cups appeared and set them on the table. They ordered two meals, and the waiter left with a thumbs-up.

“I told you, my name is San. Not Jesus, _ not _pretty-boy, just San. Which reminds me, you haven’t told me your name.”

“Would you pass me the creamer?”

San clenched his jaw and tried not to slam his fists on the table.

The stranger rolled his eyes and reached across the table, grabbed the creamer jug, and splashed a generous amount into his coffee. San watched him stir the coffee and bring it to his lips. They made eye-contact, and the stranger winked at San through his dark hair before returning his attention to his coffee.

San looked away and closed his eyes, seeking relief from embarrassment and irritation.

“Okay, you won’t tell me your name. That’s fine. Will you answer any of my other questions?”

The stranger thought with an accessorized finger on his lips and said, “Sure.”

“How’s about you just recount the events of last night, then. So we can get the whole picture,” San offered.

“Ooh, asking a hungover adolescent to remember their night of partying? Not likely. But I’ll do my best,” He smiled at San, then, and it looked almost genuine. “Let’s see…”

The stranger told San all the bits and pieces he could remember, which was not much. He had gone to three different house parties, lost his friend somewhere in between house two and three, and got into a fight with someone because they had called cats evil. San guessed that it resulted in the cut cheek. The stranger recounted his walk down the street, finding and accessing San’s car, “And then I had my rude awakening. And now I’m here telling this all to my knight in shining armor. And here comes breakfast.”

They ate mostly in silence. San learned a handful of things about the stranger who was actually not that strange at all. They had similar interests, similar aspirations, and were in the same year at the college they coincidentally both attended.

San had his reservations about coincidences, but that was a conversation for a different time.

The time finally came for the pair to leave. San paid for both of their meals (though he grumbled about the price), and they left feeling a bit more acquainted than when entering. They were still strangers, but not totally. Not anymore.

San figured the moral thing to do would be to drop the stranger off at his place of residence. Wherever that may be. Hell, probably, since he succeeded in ruining San’s day. He remembered the attractive stranger mentioning something about Northwood, though, so he started driving in that general direction.

“Whenever you see your building, let me know,” San said over the quiet radio. It was the first thing either had said to the other since leaving the restaurant.

“It’s up here on the right, just pull off here,” The stranger replied. He opened the door before the car was stopped, slammed it shut, and leaned into the passenger window.

“Thanks for the date, pretty boy,” A real smile graced his lips. “You have good taste in restaurants. I guess I should apologize for hijacking your car as a bed… but I won’t because I’m not sorry. Though I am sorry for this paint job. Yellow? Really? Anyways, take it easy, San.”

“Wait! Do I at least get to know your name?”

“Wooyoung. Don’t forget it,” He pulled down his sunglasses (San’s sunglasses) and winked before saluting and heading up the sidewalk towards an apartment building.

San just sat there burning gas as he watched the stranger─ Wooyoung─ get smaller and smaller, and then disappear into the apartment building. After taking a moment to process, San whipped his car around and floored it back to his house. He almost drove up onto the grass out of excitement. He ripped his keys out of the ignition, made sure to lock his car this time, and scrambled to get into his house as soon as possible. After almost ripping the front door off its hinges (it had happened twice before due to old age and low quality), San burst into the kitchen to find his two housemates scrutinizing a burnt egg in a frying pan.

They finally shifted their attention due to all the chaos that came along with San trying to get inside as fast as possible.

“What the hell did you get yourself into this time, San?”

“Do either of you know _ anyone _ named Wooyoung?”

~

Wooyoung was sure he had died from alcohol poisoning and was sent an angel to take him to the afterlife in an awful, yellow Jeep Wrangler. That was what he thought until he hit his head upon waking up, and felt the wrath of God inside his skull. He was very sure that he was, indeed, alive. But the angel? He turned out to be a real human, but Wooyoung still considered him ethereal, with his white-blonde hair and straight teeth and perfectly curved lips. Instead of taking a terribly hungover Wooyoung to the afterlife, the angel─ San was his name─ took him to breakfast and kindly dropped him off at his apartment.

So here Wooyoung was, feeling a bunch of different ways about the pretty blonde with the perfect lips and fiery temper. He thought his hangover was beginning to pass, but then he entered his apartment, and had to face the wrath of God again, this time taking the form of a well-mannered, young man named Yeosang. He looked furious.

“Heeyyy, Yeosang…” Wooyoung tried his best to shuffle right past his flatmate, who was looking him dead in the eyes and exuding “pissed off” energy.

“Jung Wooyoung. What. The. FUCK HAPPENED TO YOU?!!” He took a breath and continued to let loose in a most respectful way. “WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED LAST NIGHT?”

Wooyoung could not have moved if he tried.

“You know I honestly thought you died? Or were abducted or _ murdered?? _ What happened to staying together?! Why don’t you ever answer your damn phone?! WHY DO YOU HAVE A CUT ON YOUR CHEEK AND WHERE DID YOUR OTHER SHIRT GO?!!”

_ Cut on my cheek? Oh, right… _

“That was the, uh, cat fight.”

Yeosang looked about ready to give Wooyoung a matching cut on his other cheek.

He instead pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He visibly relaxed and said, “Wooyoung, I- well, I’m just glad you’re alive. You’re a dumbass, but you made it home, so that’s something,” He pulled Wooyoung into a hug. “I expect a full recap of whatever the hell you got yourself into. But first, you need to shower. You’re a mess.”

Wooyoung looked down at himself and nodded. He moved from the kitchen to his bedroom, shed his clothes, and remembered with disdain that he had indeed lost his flannel shirt. Well, it wasn’t actually lost. Wooyoung knew exactly where it was: sitting in the backseat of that god-awful, yellow Jeep Wrangler belonging to one Pretty Boy.

He thought over his encounter again in the shower, and wondered if Yeosang would know anything about this angel named San.

~

“Who?”

“Wooyoung. His name is Wooyoung.”

“What?”

“Put down the frying pan and just _ listen! _”

“Where’s our coffee?”

San reached up and pulled at the roots of his hair. “Your coffee doesn’t fucking matter right now! What matters is that I was just kidnapped and forced to eat brunch with a stranger.”

“He kidnapped you and took you on a date?”

“No! Well, I drove him to ‘breakfast’ and had to pay for both of us. He broke into my car last night and I─ well, he didn’t technically break in because I left it unlocked. Anyways, that doesn’t matter!” San shook his head to clear his thoughts. His mouth couldn’t keep up with his brain. He put his hands on the cool granite of the kitchen counter and took a deep breath.

Mingi and Yunho shared a look.

“Okay, San, let’s all sit down and try to figure out what actually matters right now,” Mingi offered, passing the frying pan to Yunho, who abandoned it in the sink.

The trio sat at the kitchen table. San told his housemates about his encounter with the stranger called Wooyoung, his “captor”, and the most surreal breakfast outing of his life. San left out the bit about finding Wooyoung _ definitely _ attractive.

“And he stole my sunglasses. _ And _ called my car ugly,” San finished with a hand to his forehead.

Both Yunho and Mingi’s mouths were hanging open by the end.

“Well, the yellow is a little… y’know…” Yunho shrugged.

“So lemme get this straight,” Mingi tried to map this all out on the kitchen table. “You find some dude sleeping in your car, and instead of just getting him out and running your errands, you take him to brunch? And you didn’t even get his number?”

“Was he hot?” Yunho added.

San leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “Well…”

“Oh my god, he was totally hot. Well, now we have to make this happen!” Mingi suddenly stood up. “Begin Operation: Find San’s Attractive Stow-Away. Phase one is obviously finding out everything we possibly can about this guy.”

“Mingi, hold on─”

“What did you say his name was, again? Woohyun? Yeowon?”

“Wooyoung, but just h─”

“Okay! Wooyoung! Brilliant! Wherever you are, Wooyoung, prepare yourself for some mediocre stalking!”

“MINGI! Hold on for just a minute! I didn’t say I wanted to date this guy, just that he was attractive and we had a weird introduction. He was kind of an asshole, and he’s a thief. He stole my-”

“Heart?” Yunho interrupted.

“Sunglasses, Yunho. He stole my fucking sunglasses. And basically stole money from me, too. I don’t think I want to get to know this guy. And stalking him is _ not _ a good idea, no matter how terrible you are at it.”

Mingi did not let San’s words sway him. “But you do want to see him again, right?” He raised an eyebrow as he waited for San to respond. Yunho looked back and forth between the two.

“Y─ I don’t know… Maybe?”

Mingi snapped his fingers and smiled. “Of course you want to see him again. I’ll see what I can do. Have faith, San, I’ll get you your captor back again.”

He left the kitchen in long strides to do God knows what.

“I’m doomed,” San slid down his chair and tugged at his hair again.

“Don’t rip out your freshly bleached hair just yet, San,” Yunho said as he pat San’s shoulder. “Mingi means well, you know. The most he’ll probably do is look him up on social media or ask some people in his classes on the off chance that they know the Wooyoung you met this morning. If you still want to, I can join you on your quest to purchase your textbooks.”

“Thanks, Yunho. I probably should do _ something _ today. Well, something I actually planned to do today,” San nodded.

“Great. I’ll go change and meet you in the car, yeah?”

San nodded again and headed towards his car for the second time today, hoping there were no more visitors. He thought about checking the backseats again, just in case, but scolded himself for being silly. He specifically remembers locking his car this time.

He started his Jeep. So far, no stow-aways springing up from anywhere. San checked his mirrors while waiting for Yunho, and noticed his rear-view mirror was slanted. Probably Wooyoung’s fault. He had fiddled with a lot of things in the car. San adjusted it, and a piece of blue fabric caught his eye. He finally looked to the back, and saw a flannel shirt sitting on the seat where Wooyoung’s head rested for barely seven hours. San turned around and tried to ignore it. He finished adjusting the mirror and started fussing with the radio. Yunho was certainly taking his time. Leaving San to his thoughts─ now of all times─ was a terrible idea. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and sighed.

San turned around again and snatched the flannel shirt. He opened it up and saw that it was blue, white, and light grey. He dropped it onto his lap and pulled at his hair for the third time in an hour. The shirt smelled like brown sugar and stale alcohol. Wooyoung’s face appeared in his mind. That stupid smirk and the cut cheek and the tattoo. The way Wooyoung said San’s name, and the fact that he decided to call him “Pretty Boy” over anything else.

He saw Yunho finally exit the house. San stuffed the flannel shirt in the side compartment of the door.

_ His name is Wooyoung, and he thinks you’re pretty. _

The thought made him smile as Yunho hopped into the passenger seat. San definitely wanted to see Wooyoung again.

~

“Well, at least I don’t have to feed you now,” Yeosang relaxed into the couch after Wooyoung was done retelling his adventures of the previous night and exciting morning.

“I got into a fight and went missing for 10 hours, and the only thing you care about is not having to babysit my hungover self? I am offended. Look how offended I am,” Wooyoung touched his chest in mock-offense.

“I thought I made it obvious how worried I was when I yelled at you an hour ago?” Yeosang laughed. “But I am seriously thankful you’re okay. Except for that,” He pointed to the cut on Wooyoung’s cheek. It wasn’t too bad after cleaning it, but the wound was starting to bruise, which wouldn’t look too pretty for at least a week. “And your missing shirt. I bought it as your birthday gift last year.”

Wooyoung debated telling Yeosang about its true location. He internally shrugged and decided to go for it. “It’s actually… Well, I know exactly where it is.”

Yeosang raised his eyebrows.

“It’s in the back of that fucking yellow Jeep Wrangler,” Wooyoung’s tone included much distress. “Oh, Yeosang, what am I gonna do? He was totally my type! Was I too mean? Should I have been less of an asshole? I should have, huh? And now he’s gone and I didn’t even get his number…” Wooyoung threw himself over Yeosang, demanding answers.

“I’m sure you’ll see him again, Wooyoung,” Yeosang tried to wiggle away from his clingy flatmate, but he was trapped. “He can’t be too hard to spot in that ‘ugly yellow Jeep’, as you put it. And if not, you’ll meet other people.”

“But he was so pretty! And his stupid car smelled so good. Ugh, I’m so stupid.”

“I agree that you’re stupid, but you can’t do anything about that. What you _ can _ do, however, is try to find him online, or ask around about this San guy. I’m serious!” Yeosang added after Wooyoung scoffed. “You think God is gonna dangle the perfect man in front of your face and just let you have him? No! You’ve met your man, now you have to work to actually get him. I’ll allow you to mope about it for today, until the hangover passes, but that’s it. I don’t wanna hear you complaining if you’re not gonna even try.”

Wooyoung guessed he was being scolded out of love, and he agreed. He finally released Yeosang from his prison and pulled his phone from the pocket of his hoodie. He typed the name “San” into the search bar of the first of many social media platforms, hoping his angel would appear.

_ I’ll find you again, San. _

~

Three weeks passed.

San (nor Mingi) had not let up on searching for Wooyoung.

Wooyoung was asking all his friends if they knew a dude with white-blonde hair named San.

Yeosang had a confession to make, but it was getting more and more “too late” to reveal that he actually knew a guy named San in one of his classes last term.

Three weeks, and nothing.

Then, the weekend came around. Classes had been rolling for two weeks, and despite the excitement, students were getting antsy for darties and game days. The weekend had finally arrived, and San wanted to do something about it.

“There’s allegedly going to be a beach party tomorrow afternoon, with a barbeque dinner (BYOM) and bonfires at night,” Yunho said from his spot in the grass. He and San went to the public sports lawns after class to kick around a football and eat too much ice cream. The relaxing feeling of laying in the grass on a warm summer afternoon with a close friend was much coveted by San.

“You wanna go?” San looked at Yunho through the blades of grass.

“I think you want to go,” Yunho said. He sat up and started ripping up grass. He sprinkled it on San’s chest and rested his head in his hands. “And… y’know… He could be there.”

“Yeah, but what are the chances? Our school is so big, what are the odds that Wooyoung is there, too?”

“Well, it’s like the opposite of a double-edged sword. If he is there, you get the snarky, tattooed boyfriend you’ve always wanted. If he isn’t there, we all get drunk and go skinny dipping in the ocean! It’s a win-win situation!”

San giggled and said, “How considerate of you. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to go. And I do miss the ocean… Okay! What time are we leaving?”

The next day came around at the speed of light, but San was feeling doubtful rather than hopeful.

“SAN I’M GONNA THROW YOU IN THE OCEAN ANYWAYS, STOP FUSSING OVER YOUR HAIR AND LET’S GO!!!”

“I’M UGLY! I’M NOT GOING!”

“Fuck’s sake, man! You look fine!” Yunho appeared in the doorway of the bathroom. He grabbed San’s arm and pulled him all the way down the stairs, shoved his car keys into his hand, and forced him out the door.

“But my-”

“We grabbed everything, San. It’s time to go. We are 30 minutes late, and it will probably take us an hour to get there and set up everything,” Mingi locked the front door and blocked it with his lengthy body.

San started the Jeep and once all three of them were situated, they headed south towards the ocean.

Mingi and Yunho were right.

Not about the travel and set-up time. That only took 40 minutes with San’s driving. But they were right about throwing San into the ocean. Once everything was deemed ready, Yunho picked up San like a sack of potatoes and ran towards the ocean with his screaming friend secured over his shoulder. Mingi joined them, and the trio spent far too long trying to drown each other in chest-deep water. San was grateful that he was wearing his swim shorts, and that he had left his cell phone in his bag. But he did not have a chance to remove his shirt, and did not bring other beach-appropriate attire. It was too hot to put on his hoodie just yet, so San spent the remainder of the afternoon shirtless after rinsing off the itchy salt water.

More and more college-aged people showed up; one group brought out giant speakers and several kegs, and the partying finally started. Hours after playing plenty of frisbee and volleyball and more swimming in the ocean and meeting new people, Mingi, Yunho, and San cooked their dinner. Countless more people came over to introduce themselves and even exchange cell phone numbers. San may have been keeping an extra eye out for a head of dark hair, but he tried to not be too disappointed when no such person showed up.

The trio was cleaning their area while the sun was still up. As San poured sand out of a cider can, he said, “I gotta admit, Mingi, I am impressed with your people skills. I don’t know how you found out about this, but I’m glad you did because we hit the jackpot.”

“Thank you, San. I told you to have faith.” Mingi spread his arms to show off the beach. “Now we are here, so far boyfriendless as you may be, enjoying a perfect September evening at the beach, surrounded by countless strangers who won’t recognize us if we decide to get on our worst behaviour.”

“Well, that’s one way to look at it.”

They continued cleaning. They were losing daylight, so they had to move quickly, but soon enough, all their things were squared away. They were still going to the bonfires, of course, but they didn’t want to have to worry about cleaning all that up afterwards. San was packing a beach chair into the trunk of his car. He walked around to the driver’s seat, debating whether or not he would wear his hoodie for the rest of the night. It was still quite warm outside, and the bonfires would only make him overheat. As his mind was drifting, he saw a familiar piece of blue fabric. He had left that cursed flannel shirt in his car all this time. San scolded himself, and then thought for a moment before snatching the shirt, slamming the car door, and locking up everything.

He nonchalantly put the shirt on as he joined his friends at a picnic table. Thankfully, neither paid any attention to his wardrobe change. He wasn’t trying to be sneaky, or anything. San just didn’t know if he could convincingly say that the shirt belonged to him.

Yunho pushed a bottle of beer towards San. He twisted off the cap and took a drink, appreciating how cold it was.

“Well, San,” Yunho clinked his bottle to San’s. “I’m sorry we couldn’t find your boyfriend. But at least we had a reason to come to the beach, right?”

“Right you are,” Mingi agreed pointedly. “And we made, like, 20 new friends.”

“He’s not my boyfriend, you guys,” San sighed, crossing his arms and feeling the flannel shirt on his skin. It was well worn and very soft.

“Well, he should be,” Mingi stated.

Yunho hummed his agreement into his bottle. “C’mon, you two. We’ve got a sunset to watch,” he said while rising from the picnic table.

Sandwiched in between his two giant friends, San felt a lightness in his chest. The sand was now cool under his bare feet. The trio walked a little ways along the water before finding a place to sit in the sand. The sounds of the calm ocean contrasted with the high energy on the beach behind them. The sun crept closer and closer to the horizon. San’s bottle was soon empty. The tide was coming in slowly, and by the time the sun was totally hidden, sea water was lapping at San’s toes.

“Let’s go see what this bonfire business is all about.”

~

“Wooyoung, are you sure we’re going the right way?”

“Yes.”

They were going the wrong way.

When Wooyoung heard about a “beach bash” that was happening on the second Saturday of term, he immediately wanted to go. He cleared out his and Yeosang’s schedules (not that they had anything better to do anyways), and planned a bunch of things for the two of them to do for the whole day. Though Wooyoung loved to party, he loved hanging out at the beach more. He grew up very close to the ocean, so any chance he got to visit nowadays, he would take the opportunity to its fullest.

Yeosang drove, and Wooyoung navigated. Wooyoung insisted on not using a GPS (“I know how to get to the beach. Just drive south.”) He wanted to get there at noon, but because of their scenic route detour, they arrived a bit later than anticipated. Regardless, Wooyoung dragged Yeosang all around the beachfront. Yeosang was sure they walked back and forth along the pier no less than 20 times. But Wooyoung was in a good mood, which was rare. He had become quite dejected since failing to reunite with San, despite both of their best efforts. So seeing Wooyoung happy like this was the opposite of a problem.

They probably spent a total of three hours going in and out of the ocean. (This guesstimate excludes water and sand fights, snack breaks, sandcastle competitions, and burying each other in the sand). It was not until four o’clock in the afternoon that considerable amounts of college kids started setting up on the beach. Yeosang and Wooyoung had been set up for hours, so they started to mingle and offered to help people set up their things. They met a considerable amount of people (some more friendly and sober than others); Wooyoung tried to stay hopeful that his angel would be there, too.

Six hours at the beach on a perfect Saturday in September, and nothing.

Wooyoung and Yeosang ate dinner with a small yet fun group of people they had met a few hours previously.

Eight hours at the beach, and nothing.

Wooyoung stood in ankle-deep sea water. He liked the way that the sky changed colours as the sun got closer to the ocean. He liked the way that the ocean calmed down as the sun neared it. The sounds of carefree partying on the beach would normally put him in a good mood. Instead, Wooyoung felt a little downcast. Is it really this hard to find people nowadays? Wooyoung didn’t want to believe so, but his experience thus far was not a very good one.

Movement in the water behind Wooyoung caused him to turn, and he was met with a smiling Yeosang.

“Hey, you. You look really dramatic out here by yourself,” Yeosang observed.

“Thanks. I’m working on my brooding juvenile image.”

“You’re not eligible for Juvi anymore, but okay.”

Wooyoung kicked water at Yeosang, who returned the action.

“Okay, hold on, hold on, my hair finally dried. Let’s not blow this out of proportion. Truce?”

“Truce,” Yeosang nodded with one last kick. He put his hands in his pockets. “So, I know you love the ocean and all, but… is there another reason we’re here today? One that perhaps involves your most recent obsession?” He tilted his head to the side as he asked for the truth.

“Maybe,” Wooyoung mirrored his friend’s posture. He looked to the darkening sky that was now lacking its closest star.

“Oh, Wooyoung, I’m sorry. I kept my eye out for him too, y’know. I guess only you could know him when you see him, though. But we still have the bonfires. He _ could _ be here.”

“You don’t have to apologize for my pipedream. We had a good day, right? So let’s keep it like that. I think I saw a bag of marshmallows somewhere by the fires. Let’s go,” Wooyoung leaned over and splashed a considerable amount of water at Yeosang before running up the beach.

“Jung Wooyoung, you are an asshole!!!”

~

San couldn’t remember the last time he roasted marshmallows on a literal stick over a raging fire. He reached over Mingi and Yunho’s legs for the bag of giant, white sugar puffs and happily stabbed number three with his ever shortening wooden lance. He was doing his best at keeping a respectful distance from a mature game of Truth or Dare. His housemates, however, were deeply involved. Mingi was now on his way to drink sea water, actually, and Yunho was videoing him do it. Because of this, most of the people gathered around the fire had gone with them.

There were five split logs scattered in some sort of formation around the firepit for seating. Mingi, Yunho, and San had managed to fit on a rather small one. Now that his friends were gone, San took the initiative to sit comfortably in the middle. He was feeling a bit tired; worn out in a good way. He’d had a productive day, but he was a little worried about getting back home. Would he end up driving him and his friends home at 2AM? Probably. He was the designated driver, after all.

San stabbed his mallow lance into the sand to put out the small fire on the tip, and pulled up the collar of the flannel shirt to his nose. He inhaled deeply and gave a great big sigh. It didn’t really smell like Wooyoung anymore. No, no, San didn’t mean it like that, he _ meant _ that it was losing its original scent, which was what Wooyoung probably smelled like since he had been wearing it before leaving it in San’s car. Yep.

San leaned forward and rested his elbows on his thighs. The fire was warm on his face. He closed his eyes and let the heat seep into his bones. He thought he should probably socialize with the other people dwindling around the fire, but he was rather enjoying this quiet moment.

“I love a good nighttime bonfire on a beach. Not really one for s’mores, though. They’re real messy, and I don’t wanna deal with all that shit. Is this seat taken?”

_ That voice… no, there’s no fucking way… _

A person belonging to the voice that complained about s’mores plopped down on the log next to San.

“Cool shirt, bro. Where’d you get it?”

San sat frozen, staring into the fire like he was in some sort of trance. _ This can’t be real… There’s no way he’s actually here, I must have fallen asleep or passed out or hit my head or─ _

“I used to have one just like it,” The person continued. “Until about three weeks ago when some uptight blonde dude with an ugly, yellow Jeep totally stole it from me.”

“My Jeep is _ not _ ugly─” San snapped out of his trance to defend his beloved car, but cut himself off when he finally faced the person sitting next to him. The first things San saw were harshly cut, dark eyes. Terribly familiar, but also just too foreign. Big and clear, despite the dark hair in the way. Next, the same sharp nose and full lips that always seemed like they would twitch into a smile. The fire cast shadows on his face, but San recognized him undoubtedly.

“Do you know how hard it is to find people nowadays when you only know their first name?” Wooyoung shifted and straddled the log, facing San now, continuing on as if they had been talking for hours previously. “I just don’t understand how bounty hunters do it, finding people so easily and tracking them down and showing up at places at just the right moment…” He trailed off for a moment and looked at San─ really looked at him─ and then looked down at his hands. In a quiet voice, he continued: “You have no idea how long I’ve been looking for you, San.”

San was still shell-shocked, and only came to when Wooyoung said his name. Without thinking, he reached out and touched Wooyoung’s shoulder. Then his arm, then his shoulder again. Then with two hands: both arms, then his thighs, then his face.

“Well, this is not how I imagined this moment in my head,” Wooyoung seemed to be fighting away a grin. “Let me know when you’re done regressing into an infant, and then we can talk.”

“You─ you’re… You’re Wooyoung. You’re here. You─ Wooyoung, oh my God. Oh my God! Holy shit! Wooyoung! You’re here!!”

“Yes. I see you haven’t forgotten my name, as per my request.”

“But how… how are you here? How…” San really couldn’t wrap his head around something so simple as this.

“Oh, c’mon, you think you can get rid of me that easily, pretty boy?” Wooyoung scoffed. “Nice fuckin’ try.”

“You weren’t exactly easy to find either, Wooyoung,” San said. He caught the way that Wooyoung’s face softened. “Do you… maybe… wanna go for a walk? Instead of toasting ourselves in front of this fire?” San suggested.

“Dude, I just sat down,” Wooyoung protested.

“Don’t call me dude! I’m trying to flirt with you, jackass!”

“What’r’you callin’ me a jackass for?”

“Oh, just fucking- come _ on, _” San pulled Wooyoung up from the log and dragged him towards the waterline. 

“First you steal my shirt, then you steal me away from the firepits… what’s next?”

“I didn’t steal your shirt, you left it in my car and I wasn’t able to return it to you.”

“You’re literally wearing it and haven’t offered it back to me. Thief.”

“Well you- You stole my sunglasses! How ‘bout that? God, I can’t believe I actually caught feelings for you─” San couldn’t shut himself up in time. That last bit was not meant to be said aloud. Now he was really in trouble.

“Suddenly, I have to go,” San stopped and made to escape (his embarrassment), but Wooyoung caught the collar of his shirt.

“Oh, no you don’t, pretty boy. I didn’t spend three weeks playing detective for you to run away after accidentally confessing. I’m in the exact same boat as you, I just have a proper filter. You weren’t this much of a disaster when we met. What happened to you, San?”

“You happened.”

Wooyoung released San as a small “oh” escaped his mouth.

San looked at the ocean. He heard the waves crashing on the beach. He felt the salty breeze lift his hair. He took a breath and said, “I realize I should never have tried to get rid of you, Wooyoung.”

“Yeah?”

A small smile lifted the corners of San’s mouth. He looked back to Wooyoung’s hopeful facade and nodded.

They continued walking.

“I don’t know if I missed you, exactly,” San continued. “But I knew I wanted to see you again. You know my friend was gonna try to stalk you? He’s kind of an idiot, though, and never followed through with it.”

“I’m flattered. Didn’t know I was worth being stalked. Even by an idiot.”

San couldn’t pinpoint Wooyoung’s tone. He hoped he wasn’t coming off like some sort of weirdo. They fell silent as they walked along the waterline. Every other wave that came onto the shore covered their feet in sea water.

The bonfires were far behind. The sounds of partying were overpowered by the sounds of the ocean. Wooyoung was the first to speak. “So, I don’t believe in ‘fate’ or whatever, but I guess we’re both here for a reason. And that reason is for us to finally meet again. And based off of what you said earlier about… y’know… and what _ I’m _ feeling, I don’t think we’re meant to be ‘just friends’.”

“So…?” San tried to control the excitement making his heart flutter.

“So,” Wooyoung stopped walking. “I think we should… date.”

“W─ we should?” San squeaked.

Wooyoung replied with a dead-eye stare.

“No, no! I didn’t mean for it to come out like that!” San shook his head furiously. Wooyoung was right. He was a disaster.

“I agree, but what I mean is, uhm… you really─ well, you just sound so sure,” San tried to save himself, but he was doing a terrible job.

“I’ve had roughly 20 days to think about you, San. I’m sure. What about you, though?”

San’s brain came to a screeching stop. _ 20 days to think about me? _ He was still trying to process the fact that _ Wooyoung _ was _ here. _ That he had met Wooyoung _ again. _ San’s eyes moved around Wooyoung’s face. It was too dark to see properly.

“I─ y─ yes. I want to date you, too.”

_ Wow, _ San thought with a growing smile. _ That was easy. _

“Great,” Wooyoung said, lips finally twitching into a real smile. Though it was dark, San noted how it brightened Wooyoung’s face. Wooyoung looked down at their feet, now in ankle deep water as the tide continuously crept in.

“So… what do we do now?” Wooyoung asked as he shoved his hands into his pockets.

“I think a certain yellow Jeep is calling our names,” San replied as he held out his hand.

“You mean ugly, yellow Jeep,” Wooyoung corrected as he shyly entwined their fingers.

“Okay, it’s _ not _ that bad,” San settled.

~

Wooyoung didn’t really like s’mores. He liked roasting marshmallows, but not making and eating s’mores. They were messy, and Wooyoung didn’t want to give that much attention to something like that. Yeosang, on the other hand, loved s’mores. So Wooyoung found himself roasting marshmallows for s’mores anyways, but gave two out of four to his friend to create a monster s’more. Wooyoung called it a S’TooMuch.

They moved from one firepit to another, checking out the vibe and staying to chat with people if it seemed like a fun time. Wooyoung didn’t know what time it was when he and Yeosang moved towards fire pit No.4. But suddenly a large-ish group of people was moving towards the ocean, jeering loudly. There was a pair of two guys at the head of the pack, one screaming playfully at the other, who was filming him. As they got closer, Wooyoung commented to Yeosang how “damn tall” they were.

“Hey! Mingi here’s just been dared to drink seawater! Come watch, we’re placing bets on him vomiting!” The tall guy who was filming the other tall guy (Mingi was his name, apparently) grabbed Yeosang’s arm, and dragged him towards the water.

Wooyoung started to laugh aloud. “Have fun with the skyscrapers!” He called. “Send me a text if someone tries to drown you!”

He was alone, then, and set off towards fire pit No.4 with a funny feeling in the back of his head. As he approached the pit, he noticed that there were five big logs being used as “benches”, and that they were all occupied by at least one person. Wooyoung assessed each person, deciding whether or not he was in the mood to socialize now that Yeosang was M.I.A.

There was one person sitting almost in the middle of a log. He was hunched over facing the fire. He seemed like a good option; he probably wouldn’t engage Wooyoung much, if not at all.

Wooyoung approached this person, and noticed that it was a guy with blonde hair wearing a flannel shirt. He was going to compliment the shirt as he sat next to him, but stopped without doing so. That shirt looked strangely familiar, even though he hadn’t seen it in three weeks…

It all clicked.

Wooyoung was just standing there deciding what to do next. Mainly: how to not fuck this all up for eternity.

How do you approach someone you have a weird infatuation with, but you haven’t seen or heard from them in three weeks? And how do you not scare them shitless, but also surprise them casually?

He thought up a few scenarios in his head, and chose the one he was just a bit confident in. Wooyoung took a deep breath, shook out the jitters, and approached his angel. He tried for a casual introduction, and ended up complaining about s’mores.

“Is this seat taken?”

~

San led Wooyoung to his car.

“Back to the place where it all began…” Wooyoung said.

“It is kind of funny how this whole situation revolves around my car,” San dropped Wooyoung’s hand to unlock the car.

“Hilarious.”

“Oh, c’mon Wooyoung. You’ve gotta admit it’s a little bit ironic.”

“I think this banana-on-wheels is gonna give me PTSD.”

San only rolled his eyes in reply. He put down the seats in the back row, and then popped the trunk to move some stuff around. Luckily, he and his housemates didn’t actually bring a lot of stuff, so there was a big empty space in the car after some shifting and stacking. After deeming it up to his standards, San sat in the open trunk and spread his arms wide.

“There. Now, we can sit─” San started to say, but Wooyoung was soon standing directly in front of him. His hands were resting on San’s thighs, and his fingers began to drum impatiently.

“Okay, but when do I get to kiss you?” Wooyoung demanded.

“Oh my God,” San accidentally said out loud before covering his face with his hands.

“Too soon?” Wooyoung asked with a smirk. San missed it, though. He was trying to hide his red face by laying down in the trunk; trying to get as far away as possible from his… boyfriend? while remaining exactly where he was. He strongly considered putting the crusty beach towels over his whole body. Wooyoung’s fingers drummed on his thighs again.

“Fine. At least move over, then. If anyone is gonna be sleeping in this car, it’s gonna be me,” Wooyoung’s presence was gone for a moment, causing San to finally uncover his face.

After more shifting and some wiggling, the pair was settled quite comfortably in the back of the car, and were actually able to see out of the sunroof. To San’s surprise, many stars were visible. He wondered if Wooyoung would be impressed with his astronomical skills.

“Huh, I’ve never seen this many stars at this beach before,” Wooyoung’s voice said on San’s left.

“So you’ve been here before?”

“Yeah… I try to come often, but it just gets harder and harder. I grew up by the ocean─ not this one, but the ocean is the ocean. Coming here just feels… good. I feel at home.”

“Tell me about your home,” San requested.

He learned that Wooyoung has a brother, that he is reserved yet outgoing, and that he has quite an acute sense of smell. He learned about the compass tattoo. He learned about the little details that made up Wooyoung. Just when he thought he would never hear a whisper of him ever again, San’s everything was entirely Wooyoung.

“My friends think I’m kinda mean, but that’s up to you to decide, I guess,” Wooyoung finished.

“Well, our first interaction _ was _ you kidnapping me and then stealing from me,” San shrugged.

“I did _ not _ kidnap you. You just fell for my edgy charms. I don’t take responsibility for the actions of my hungover self.”

“Does that mean I get to keep the shirt?” San fought a smile threatening to disfigure his lips.

“Yeah, whatever. Keep it. Looks better on you, anyways.”

“I’ve decided then. You are not mean.”

“I’m honoured you think so.”

San laughed then, fully and brightly. His entire left side was warm from the close contact. He didn’t see the toothy grin that split Wooyoung’s face, but he did feel the hand reaching for his own, and accepted it.

“So, San. Shall I pester you about your personal life, or ask if you know anything about the floating balls of gas in the sky?”

San smiled again. “Let’s start with the basics: the zodiacs.” (Wooyoung grumbled something mean about ‘fucking horoscopes’, but San continued.) “There are 12 of them, are you ready?”

He succeeded in impressing Wooyoung with his astronomical knowledge. He also succeeded in putting Wooyoung to sleep. San was asleep soon after, listening to both the distant waves rolling up the beach, and the slow-paced breaths coming from the person beside him.

So that’s twice now that a mean-tempered guy named Wooyoung has fallen asleep in San’s car. It was the first time that San has ever slept in his own car. And the first time he ever did so with someone he’d really just met. But they weren’t strangers anymore.

And if San curled up and cuddled close, no one would know.

No one except his two housemates, and Wooyoung’s one flatmate, who had bonded quickly since they met, and found their lovestruck friends finally together again.

**Author's Note:**

> if you want proof that ateez thinks wooyoung is mean (i think they are implying that he shares his opinions freely, and says things bluntly) then watch the "[입덕 CAR] 에이티즈 (ATEEZ)" interview on youtube i rest my case.  
i am also mean and i love wooyoung dearly so tough stuff.


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